Jobs That Don’t Drug Test: 9 Big Employers Compared

Store-floor jobs at most big chains skip the drug test. Cashier, crew, clerk and barista hires at Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Kroger, McDonald’s and Starbucks typically start work without a pre-hire screen, going by company statements and years of applicant reports.

Costco is the clear exception on paper, and Publix hires report a swab too. So if you’re hunting for jobs that don’t drug test, your job title decides the screen more than the logo on the building does.

A Walmart cashier and a Walmart pharmacy tech apply to the same company and get opposite answers. A CDL driver gets tested at every employer below, because federal law requires it. Which side of that line is the role you want?

Which Big Employers Test Store and Hourly Hires?

Six of the nine employers below typically skip a pre-hire drug test for ordinary store or crew roles, two (Costco and Publix) screen store hires, and FedEx varies by building. Every employer on the list tests some roles, so read the middle column before you relax.

The four employers with their own guides split two ways. Walmart and Target state that only certain jobs require a screen, and applicants consistently report that cashier and team-member roles never see one. Costco sits at the far end, because its written policy covers every final applicant.

Home Depot moved toward the Walmart end on September 1, 2024, when an internal memo reported by Marijuana Moment limited pre-hire testing to two security groups and pulled marijuana from its panels. If you applied there for a floor or freight role, you’re outside both groups.

The “typically” in those rows is doing honest work. A hiring manager in one town can run an old routine for months after corporate changes course. Treat each row as the strong pattern, then confirm yours in writing.

FedEx, McDonald’s, Kroger, Publix and Starbucks Up Close

None of these five employers publishes a clear pre-hire testing rule for its hourly workforce. Each section starts with what the company itself says, then the applicant reports, labeled with the subreddit and month, then one step you can take.

Does FedEx Drug Test Package Handlers?

FedEx doesn’t publish a pre-employment testing policy for package handlers, and handler reports split by building. FedEx handler postings, as summarized in our FedEx seasonal jobs guide, mention E-Verify and criminal-history and security-screening rules, plus federal rules for commercial driving jobs. They don’t mention a drug test for handlers or Non-DOT couriers.

Applicants fill in the gap with mixed stories. On r/Fedexers in April 2026, a part-time hire was surprised to get a pre-employment test notice, and in August 2026 a handler in Memphis posted a drug-test request for a ground warehouse job.

Other workers describe a narrower screen. A September 2026 commenter who said they’d spent 11 years at FedEx Office wrote that its screen looks for hard drugs, not weed, and an Oklahoma commenter said the same about FedEx Ground.

Drivers are the one settled group.

If you’ll drive for FedEx with a CDL, you fall under the federal DOT rule covered further down, and your state’s cannabis law won’t change that test. Does your onboarding email name a clinic or a screening vendor? Then the test is part of your hire; if it doesn’t, ask the recruiter directly.

McDonald’s: The Franchise Owner Decides

McDonald’s crew jobs typically come without a pre-hire drug test, but McDonald’s itself doesn’t publish a testing policy for crew. Its McHire hiring site, checked in October 2026, says independent franchisees “are solely responsible for all employment matters in their restaurants,” so the owner of your location sets the screening rules.

Applicants describe those owners as rarely testing at hire. When a 17-year-old asked r/McDonaldsEmployees in August 2026 whether new crew get tested, the top reply was blunt:

“If they drug tested their employees, they wouldn’t have employees. They don’t drug test.”
r/McDonaldsEmployees, August 2026 (106 upvotes)

The after-hire side differs. A franchise worker on r/McDonalds in January 2018 said the hiring paperwork included consent to a test at any time, used in practice after a workplace injury and a workers’ comp claim. Read your onboarding forms for that clause, and ask the restaurant manager if you’re unsure.

Kroger: Pharmacy and Leadership, Not Clerks

Kroger typically skips the pre-hire screen for clerks and courtesy clerks, according to employees on r/kroger through 2026, while pharmacy, leadership and asset-protection hires report being tested. Kroger doesn’t publish a pre-employment testing policy for store roles.

The reports line up across divisions. In May 2026, one commenter said testing is generally for leadership or asset protection, and another said the King Soopers division tests only salaried management. A July 2026 reply named assistant store leaders and pharmacy.

Applying for a supervisor post? In an April 2026 thread, one employee said they weren’t tested when they applied for one, though pharmacy hires are. A pharmacy hire in March 2026 reported a saliva swab.

Two details matter for you. A May 2026 commenter said the application asks whether you consent to a test even when none follows, and several employees named injuries, such as a slicer accident or a powered-jack incident, as the trigger for testing after hire. In that May thread, the drug test first showed up on the website used for the background check, so read that portal closely.

Publix: Store Hires Report a Swab

Publix is the grocer on this list where ordinary store hires report a drug screen: deli and other new team members on r/publix in 2026 describe a mouth swab during onboarding. Publix’s own careers FAQ, published in September 2025, lists a background check and onboarding after the interview and doesn’t mention a drug test.

The reports are consistent on the screen and loose on what it checks. An August 2026 deli hire in Georgia posted that they hadn’t expected the test, and threads from February 2026 describe waiting for results before a start date.

What about THC? A May 2026 reply with 45 upvotes said Publix doesn’t test for marijuana unless you’re applying to the pharmacy, and an April 2026 pharmacy commenter said pharmacy screens test “for everything” because staff handle narcotics.

Plan on the swab if you accept a Publix role, and if you’re applying to the pharmacy, expect the strictest version of it.

Starbucks: Company Cafés Skip It, Licensed Counters May Not

Starbucks typically doesn’t drug test barista hires at company-operated cafés. Its careers FAQ, checked in October 2026, walks you through applying, the Applicant Insights assessment and the dress code, and doesn’t mention a drug test.

Barista reports have said the same thing for years. In an October 2021 r/starbucksbaristas thread, the top answer, with 329 upvotes, was “No drug tests.” Another commenter in that discussion pointed out that a Starbucks counter inside another retailer, such as a Target, may follow the host company’s rules.

You’ll still complete a background check after the interview, according to an August 2026 r/starbucks post. So check who signs your paycheck: a café run by Starbucks and a licensed counter inside a grocery store or airport can carry different hiring steps.

Which Jobs Get Drug Tested Almost Everywhere?

Commercial drivers, many federal and safety-sensitive jobs, pharmacy staff and security roles get tested at almost any employer, because a federal rule, a regulator or a controlled-substance risk sits behind the screen. No company’s relaxed store policy reaches these roles.

Commercial drivers lead the list. The federal rule in 49 CFR Part 382 covers employers of drivers who need a commercial driver’s license. Section 382.301 bars you from safety-sensitive driving until the employer has a verified negative drug result for you.

Section 382.305 then sets a baseline minimum of 50 percent of driver positions for random drug testing each year, which the FMCSA can adjust. Pilots, rail crews, transit operators and pipeline workers fall under parallel DOT agency rules that share the testing procedures in 49 CFR Part 40.

Federal work comes next, with an important limit. Executive Order 12564, signed in 1986, directs federal agencies to test employees in sensitive positions. Are you eyeing a federal contractor instead? That’s a different case.

SAMHSA’s summary of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988, last updated in July 2024, says contracts of $100,000 or more and all federal grants require a written drug-free policy, an awareness program and conviction reporting. Testing isn’t on that minimum list, so a contractor job doesn’t automatically mean you’ll face a screen.

Then come the roles where the risk is the job itself. Walmart, Kroger and Publix pharmacy applicants all report a screen, even where the cashier ten aisles away has none. Asset protection and security hires report testing at Walmart, Kroger and Home Depot. Equipment work is the gray zone. Forklift and power-equipment operators at Costco and Home Depot describe tests tied to accidents more than hiring, so you may skip the cup at hire and still face one after a crash.

Can You Still Be Tested After You’re Hired?

Yes, a job with no pre-hire screen can still test you after an on-the-job injury or when a manager documents suspected impairment, and that’s the test most hourly workers actually meet.

Walmart’s ethics FAQ and Costco’s written policy both name those triggers, and employee reports at Target, Kroger and McDonald’s describe the same pattern. The suspicion route has a higher bar than many workers expect. A Target leader on r/Target in May 2026, quoted in our Target guide, said a second leader has to agree before anyone gets sent for a test.

Random testing is rare for store staff in employee reports, but if you hold a CDL, you’re in a random pool every year under Section 382.305.

Does a Legal-Cannabis State Change the Answer?

A legal-cannabis state changes the answer only in narrow ways: California and Washington, for example, limit how employers can use certain THC test results in hiring, but both carve out safety-sensitive and federally regulated jobs. No state law reaches a DOT-tested driver.

California’s rule is in Government Code Section 12954, the section created by AB 2188, which became operative on January 1, 2024. It makes it unlawful to penalize you in hiring or employment for off-the-job cannabis use, or for a test that finds nonpsychoactive cannabis metabolites.

Employers may still use tests that don’t screen for those metabolites, and the current text also bars asking you about prior cannabis use when you apply. The law excludes building and construction trades, positions needing a federal background investigation or security clearance, and testing that state or federal law requires.

Washington’s version, RCW 49.44.240, took effect on January 1, 2024 and covers initial hiring only. It doesn’t touch post-accident or suspicion testing, and it exempts law enforcement, fire departments, first responders and 911 dispatchers, corrections officers, airline and aerospace jobs, and safety-sensitive roles the employer identified before you applied.

Neither law lets you work impaired, and company policies don’t all match them. Costco’s written policy, for instance, says marijuana use isn’t accepted as a medical explanation for a positive result while promising to follow state law where the two conflict. Other states have their own rules and dates, so check your state labor department’s current guidance. None of this is legal advice.

How Do You Find Out Before You Accept?

Your conditional offer or onboarding email is the most reliable place to find out, because companies that screen have to schedule it. Target says it tells you at offer time if a role needs a screen, and Costco’s policy requires your written consent first.

Ask once, at the right moment.

During the interview, the question can read as a red flag; after the offer, it’s a routine onboarding detail. I interviewed candidates at Walmart, Wells Fargo and Bank of America, and from that side of the desk a calm logistics question after an offer reads as organized, not suspicious.

• Say this: “Is a pre-employment drug screen part of onboarding for this role, and where would it be scheduled?”
• Not this: “Do you guys test for weed?” It answers a question the recruiter never asked.

Keep the drug test separate from the background check in your head, since they’re different steps with different rules. If a record worries you more than a screen, our guide to jobs that hire felons explains how big employers weigh criminal history after a conditional offer.

Jobs That Don’t Drug Test: Quick Answers

What jobs don’t drug test?

Entry-level store, crew and barista jobs at Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Kroger, McDonald’s and Starbucks typically don’t drug test before hire, based on company statements and applicant reports. Pharmacy, security, management and commercial driving roles at those same employers often do, and almost any employer can test you after an on-the-job accident.

Which big companies don’t drug test?

Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Kroger, McDonald’s and Starbucks typically don’t screen ordinary hourly store hires, though each tests certain roles. Costco’s written policy tests every final applicant, Publix store hires report a mouth swab, and FedEx handler reports vary by building.

Do most retail jobs drug test?

Most big-box and grocery retail jobs don’t drug test cashiers and stockers before hire, going by Walmart’s and Target’s own role-based policies and years of applicant reports. Costco and Publix are the main exceptions, and if you apply for retail pharmacy, asset protection or management, expect a screen.

Does FedEx drug test?

FedEx tests CDL drivers under federal DOT rules, but it doesn’t publish a pre-hire testing policy for package handlers. Handler reports on r/Fedexers in 2026 are mixed. Some hires received a pre-employment test notice, while FedEx Office and FedEx Ground commenters said screens target hard drugs, not THC.

Does McDonald’s drug test?

McDonald’s crew members typically aren’t drug tested before hire, according to r/McDonaldsEmployees reports from August 2026. McDonald’s says independent franchisees handle all employment matters in their restaurants, so the rules depend on the owner of your location, and a test after a workplace injury is the scenario employees mention most.